Entries by Raphael Lopoukhine

How to Avoid a Renovation Nightmare in Toronto

Avoiding renovation nightmares in Toronto boils down to meticulous planning and clear communication. Many issues arise from rushing into projects without a clear understanding of the scope, which leads to unrealistic timelines and budgets. By comprehensively understanding your renovation project through a Pre-construction Process, you can set a solid foundation. Proper documentation and clear, ongoing communication further safeguard against common pitfalls, ensuring your renovation dream doesn’t turn into a distressing reality.

How to Build a Home Sauna in Toronto

Embrace the cost-effective luxury of a home sauna in Toronto—a sanctuary for health and relaxation. With benefits ranging from stress relief to improved health, saunas offer a compact, low-maintenance luxury that fits any home size. This guide simplifies the process from choosing the perfect spot (indoors or outdoors) to selecting durable materials like cedar and efficient heating options. Highlighting the importance of moisture control and ventilation, especially for indoor setups, and introducing advanced features for customization, it ensures your sauna is a haven of comfort. Maintenance is minimal, focusing on cleanliness and airflow. Costs vary based on customization, but with strategic planning, a sauna is an attainable addition to your home, promising long-term wellness and luxury.

Midtown – First Floor

Kevin and Shanna’s residence, a three-story semi-detached home, had slowly become a fragmented and dimly lit collection of spaces. The ground floor, in particular, suffered from an excess of poorly configured walls that created a maze of small, impractical rooms. The clients’ aspiration was to inject a sense of openness and light into their living space, necessitating a significant structural and aesthetic transformation.

How to ensure your older Toronto home renovation stays on time?

You’re staring at cracked plaster walls, uneven creaky floors, and outdated fixtures of your century home and thinking, “It’s time for a renovation.” But let’s be clear: conducting major renovations of an older home isn’t a simple project. It’s a multi-month logistical challenge that involves detailed planning, hundreds of decisions, and a significant investment of time and money.

How Long Does a Home Renovation Project Take in Toronto?

Embarking on a custom home renovation project, whether to build your dream home or to freshen up an outdated space, can be both an exciting and overwhelming process as an experienced or new home owner. Whether you’re considering a full home renovation, floor-by-floor upgrades, or adding extra space to your house, one of the first questions you’ll likely ask is: “How long is this major renovation going to take?” 

Corso Italia – First Floor

Kevin and Shanna’s residence, a three-story semi-detached home, had slowly become a fragmented and dimly lit collection of spaces. The ground floor, in particular, suffered from an excess of poorly configured walls that created a maze of small, impractical rooms. The clients’ aspiration was to inject a sense of openness and light into their living space, necessitating a significant structural and aesthetic transformation.

What You Should Know About Renovating Older Century Homes in Toronto

You’re staring at cracked plaster walls, uneven creaky floors, and outdated fixtures of your century home and thinking, “It’s time for a renovation.” But let’s be clear: conducting major renovations of an older home isn’t a simple project. It’s a multi-month logistical challenge that involves detailed planning, hundreds of decisions, and a significant investment of time and money.

Parkdale – Laneway House

Nestled in Parkdale, Toronto, we’ve transformed six underutilized parking spaces into a sustainable, light-filled laneway house, offering a unique blend of comfort and energy efficiency. Leveraging passive house principles, this project features in-floor radiant heating, efficient insulation, and an innovative “breathing wall” for continuous ventilation, all whilst maintaining a clean design aesthetic. This transformation not only pays homage to Toronto’s garage vernacular with its robust exterior but also opens new vistas for sustainable, urban living.

Lawrence Park – Whole Home

Ivan and Melissa were interested in updating the style and layout of their home in Lawrence Park, Toronto. Following a recommendation from friends who we had worked with previously, they reached out to us and we began our Pre-construction process, to define their renovation priorities and provide a plan and schedule that satisfied their investment goals and timeline.

The Junction – Bathroom

Kevin and Shanna’s residence, a three-story semi-detached home, had slowly become a fragmented and dimly lit collection of spaces. The ground floor, in particular, suffered from an excess of poorly configured walls that created a maze of small, impractical rooms. The clients’ aspiration was to inject a sense of openness and light into their living space, necessitating a significant structural and aesthetic transformation.